The Arab League organizes Arab Cultural Heritage Day
The General Secretariat of the League of Arab States organized the Social Affairs Sector – Department of Culture and Dialogue of Civilizations” In cooperation and coordination with the Palestine Sector, the Occupied Arab Territories, and the Permanent Delegation of the State of Palestine, Arab Cultural Heritage Day is in implementation of the League Council’s decision at the ministerial level No. 8030 of March 2016. Regarding the celebration of Arab Cultural Heritage Day on February 27 of each year, which was held this year on February 26
2024 due to logistical matters in the General Secretariat.
The Arab Cultural Heritage Day was chosen on February 27 because it is the day on which the heritage and antiquities of Mosul, Iraq, were destroyed in 2015. Therefore, choosing it is not only to celebrate Arab cultural heritage, but As a reminder and awareness that Arab heritage is targeted for destruction and theft, whether through terrorism, occupation, or any form of crime and brutality, it must also be protected from environmental factors as well, and work must be done to preserve and protect it in all possible ways.
The theme of Heritage Day this year was chosen, entitled Protecting and Reviving the Cultural Heritage of the State of Palestine, in view of the devastating aggression and violations that the State of Palestine is going through during this period, especially the Gaza Strip. Starring about the law and human values, it would be more appropriate for this year’s event to be the subject of protecting and reviving the heritage of Palestine
which the Zionist occupation has harmed through destruction, distortion, fallacy, defamation, and distraction, whether
Ambassador Dr. confirmed that Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the Social Affairs Sector at the League of Arab States, stressed in her speech the importance of the Palestinian heritage, and indeed any heritage, as it is the basis of glory and sovereignty for any nation and civilization, as it is its identity, history, and heritage. Her Excellency emphasized in her speech the importance of this cultural heritage. And the social aspect of this land. Since the beginning of 1917, with the beginning of the colonization of Palestine, many events have taken place on this land. Between Judaization, displacement, expulsion, demolition, killing, and the theft of heritage, the theft or falsification of heritage is tantamount to the theft of that land. The land of Palestine has a history and a popular civilization. It is the birthplace of the heavenly religions and has its landmarks and ancient heritage sites, its rituals, customs, seasons, and costumes. And its food, art and singing. Her Excellency stressed the Arab League’s keenness to protect the Palestinian heritage and that the role of those gathered in the hall is to preserve and protect this. Heritage, each in its field of expertise.
After that, Ambassador Muhannad Al-Aklouk, Permanent Representative of the State of Palestine, delivered his speech, where he shed light on the crimes currently occurring in the Gaza Strip. He stressed in his speech that through this occasion, it seeks to protect the cultural heritage in Palestine, as the occupation force and apartheid continue for the 143rd day in a row, committing the most heinous The crime of genocide in the modern era. In fact, Israel goes far beyond the crime of genocide as defined by international law and the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. In 1948, Israel is the enemy of humanity, which over the course of about 5 months killed 30,000 martyrs and wounded 70,000, and forcibly displaced two million Palestinians inside the Gaza Strip, meaning 87% of the citizens of the Gaza Strip, and destroyed 360,000 homes in Gaza, meaning about % 65 of the housing units in the Strip, and it did so consciously and with planning Completely.
Then, Dr. Minister Plenipotentiary Haider al-Jubouri, Director of the Department of Palestine Affairs in the Palestine Sector and the Occupied Territories, delivered a speech in which he indicated that culture played a prominent role in protecting the national identity of the Palestinian people with all its components. Through it, the Palestinian people preserved their traditions, cultural heritage, cultural properties, sanctities, values, and behavior. This people has long been deprived of their cultural institutions that are concerned with the cultural and civilizational heritage in the State of Palestine. Because of the crimes committed by the occupation authorities against cultural, historical and religious property, violating the special protection assigned to these places under international provisions and agreements such as the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in Armed Conflicts of 1954, which places on us a great duty to protect these properties and expose The occupation’s practices towards it, and His Excellency stated that it has become the duty of all Institutions
Protecting world heritage, providing financial and technical assistance to restore endangered historical monuments, Due to the apartheid wall and Israeli settlements, which fuel the process of distortion to which the Palestinian identity is exposed. There are thousands of archaeological sites and monuments that were isolated by the wall, in addition to dozens of sites that were destroyed by settlement paths.
After that came the speech of Dr. Ayman Mohsen, Director General of Cultural Projects and Programs at UNESCO, which he delivered on behalf of Dr. Nouria Saez – Regional Director of the UNESCO Office for Egypt and Sudan, pointed out that this is an important day in which the meeting takes place under the slogan of “protecting and reviving the cultural heritage of Palestine,” as it is important to acknowledge the enormous challenges facing us to protect Cultural property in general and especially in the event of armed conflict, as is the case in Palestine, as undermining Palestinian cultural identity undermines Arab identity. He also reviewed in his speech the efforts of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in protecting and preserving cultural heritage in the region. It played an important role in promoting the importance of preserving cultural diversity and heritage around the world. He stated that through its various initiatives, UNESCO has worked actively to protect and preserve cultural sites, traditions and distinct handicrafts that contribute to the unique cultural fabric of Palestine. These efforts include a wide range of activities, including national capacity strengthening programmes, technical assistance and advice to enhance the conservation and management of cultural heritage sites. He added that UNESCO played an effective role in recognizing the importance of Palestinian cultural heritage on the international scene. The organization has included several sites on the World Heritage List, such as the Old City of Jerusalem and its walls, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, and the terraces south of Jerusalem in ancient Battir. His Excellency stressed that these designations not only recognize the exceptional universal value of these sites, but also contribute to raising the level of
awareness about the importance of preserving them.
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Then Dr. Amira Al-Fadil, Advisor to the Director-General for External Relations of the Organization of the Islamic World
For Education, Cultural and Science (ISESCO), confirmed the organization’s speech, which was conveyed by Greetings from the Director General of the Organization, then I stated that the Organization spares no effort to protect the heritage of Palestine, which is targeted by the occupation. It has not left anything green or dry without seeking to destroy it, and does not care about international agreements or covenants, especially the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in Armed Conflicts of 1954. It referred to the burning of Holy Jerusalem by The occupation in 1969, which was a catalyst for the establishment of the Organization of the Islamic Conference and then the establishment of ISESCO. It also indicated that the organization is concerned with the heritage of Palestine, protecting it and taking There are various ways to preserve it. The Jerusalem administration has established a committee of experts in the field of heritage, especially monitoring the destroyed heritage and working to restore and document it, noting that no matter how much the stone is destroyed, it is difficult to destroy thought, belief, customs and traditions that are deeply rooted in the conscience and passed down through generations.
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